Wherein I discuss whatever comes to mind… seriously, whatever!

School Taxes

As I was reading one of my 10 million magazines, I came across a letter from the editor. In it she was waxing poetic about the home in which she reared her children. Then she started to list all the reasons why, as an empty nester, that she should sell. Her biggest point? That her children no longer went to public schools so why should she pay school tax? I was so shocked. Then I was IMMEDIATELY mad. I sputtered, I stomped, I seriously considered writing.

Then I realized that it wouldn’t matter. No one will print a letter from a teacher about the importance of supporting schools well past your children’s attendance. It would look self-serving. After all, the only reason “teachers’ unions” care about money is so that teachers can get a raise. Right?

Wrong! The reason school taxes should continue to be paid is that, while YOUR child has finished, other children have not. These children, as is so quaintly pointed out in some other magazine, “are our future.” I agree. They are. However, in order to give them equal or BETTER education than previous years, there still needs to be a tax base to pay for that societal luxury. As a society that has our children recite “with liberty and justice for all” and has a founding father stating the importance of the “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”, we need to uphold these beliefs and rights. We need to do the RIGHT thing.

I believe in a free society. I believe that education is a key component in helping students learn to think, analyze, and innovate. However, in order to do that I need resources. Resources which come from school taxes. Not platitudes about schools or questions about failure. Good old-fashioned infusion of money.

Like this:

Related

Post navigation

3 thoughts on “School Taxes”

the question isn’t whether taxes should be paid but IS at what rate. i for one say that if you could educate children taxing me at 15% you are going to have to quadruple explain ANY tax increase to 16%. this i believe is where people are having a problem. you were educated in the 70-80’s at a far lower tax rate than today. does this mean that because more money is spent today that every child will be smarter than you? more money must mean gauranteed better results…..or does it????????????

Money is and is not the problem/answer. Honestly I can say that it does appear that good money goes after bad in some instances. You probably aren’t aware, dear brother, that I’m a Libertarian –socially liberal but fiscally tight. I think all governmental systems waste 10% of the money they are entrusted with.

When you look at education now, versus education in the 70s, there are many prominent differences. While there was racial strife, more students had learned HOW to behave in class. There were more breaks (recesses) in the day. There were also other special classes (art, music, library, PE) than now.

I think HOW the money is allocated is a huge issue. That said, not everything with money has to do with the student/classroom. There is testing to consider. There are buildings to run. There are people who work in buildings to pay.

There are also the outside interests who drive standards and curriculum because they have specific things they want in their “workers”. Problem is, we aren’t really PRODUCING anything as a country so we’re not really making much money. Furthermore, jobs have been moved from the US.

IF society wants as HUGE of a role in DICTATING what happens in school, then they MUST pay for it. Right now NO school looks like its 70s counterpart. We can’t afford it.

It is our responsibility to see that children get a good education whether we are in a recession or not. Down the years someone will talk about why we don’t have a higher graduation rate here in Iowa. If our sales tax was increased by 1 cent it would bring in additional money that could be used for teachers and staff for our schools. All the polititians are worried that if they increase any type of tax they won’t get reelected and it should be more than about them. Shame on them.